William Hugh Kenner was born in 1923 at Peterborough, Ontario, to Mary
(Williams) Kenner and Henry Rowe Hocking Kenner, a school principal and
instructor of Greek and Latin. He studied under Marshall McLuhan at the
University of Toronto where he received a BA (1945) and MA (1946, gold medal in
English). He then attended Yale University where his PhD dissertation,
The Poetry of Ezra Pound, received the
Porter Prize in 1950.

After completing his degrees, appointments followed at Santa Barbara
College (later University of California at Santa Barbara), 1950-1973; Johns
Hopkins University, 1973-1990, as Andrew Mellon Professor of Humanities; and
the University of Georgia, where he was Franklin and Callaway Professor of
English from 1990 until his retirement in 1999. Kenner has also held visiting
professorships at the University of Michigan (1957), the University of Chicago
(1962), the University of Virginia (1964-1965), and the Northrop Frye Chair at
the University of Toronto (1985). He received honorary doctorates from the
University of Chicago and Trent University, two Guggenheim fellowships (1956,
1963), and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature (1956).

Unlike most of his fellow academics and literary critics, Kenner knew
personally, and collaborated with, many of the subjects about whom he has
written. In a conversation with Ezra Pound in the early 1950s, Pound insisted,
"You have an obligation to visit the great men of your own time." Kenner took
this admonition literally and over the years has visited and befriended many of
the major figures of literary modernism, including Samuel Beckett, William F.
Buckley, T. S. Eliot, Wyndham Lewis, William Carlos Williams, and Louis
Zukofsky. Kenner's circle of contacts also included prominent figures outside
of the modernist movement, such as Guy Davenport, Buckminster Fuller, Marshall
McLuhan, and Charles Tomlinson. In addition, Kenner has written extensively,
sometimes definitively, about Joseph Conrad, William Faulkner, F. Scott
Fitzgerald, Ford Madox Ford, Henry James, James Joyce, J. M. Synge, Evelyn
Waugh, H. G. Wells, Virginia Woolf, and William Butler Yeats.

Considered the premier scholar and critic of literary modernism of his
generation, Kenner's career spans 50 years during which he has produced 25
books (and contributed to at least 200 others), nearly a thousand periodical
contributions, and numerous other publications, sound recordings, and
broadcasts. He is generally acknowledged as the pre-eminent authority on Ezra
Pound and one of the major voices of James Joyce scholarship. The 1951
publication of his Yale dissertation
The Poetry of Ezra Pound was the first
serious book on the subject to be published in America, and
Dublin's Joyce (1955) and
Joyce's Voices (1978) are considered
classics in Joyce criticism.

Kenner's numerous articles and publications on modernist studies
examine the movement in broad terms in a manner accessible to a general
readership:
The Pound Era (1971) outlines
international modernism,
A Homemade World (1975) analyzes American
modernist writers,
A Colder Eye (1983), the Irish modernists,
and
A Sinking Island (1988), the English
modernists. Fellow professor, critic, and writer Guy Davenport summarized,
"Kenner gave us a way to read Pound, as he has given us a way to read Joyce and
Beckett. This is not to say that these are the only way to read these writers:
What Kenner does best is show us how to read, and how to appreciate what we
read. A critic cannot hope for more success."

The scope of Kenner's critical thought ranges across American and
English intellectual history. He has written on mathematics, science,
technology, and visual arts.
Bucky: A Guided Tour of Buckminster Fuller
(1973) is a non-academic introduction to Fuller's theories of cosmic order and
its physical properties. Kenner's book reviews for
Byte magazine (1986-1993) examined
computer technology for a general readership, and his
Art and Antiques magazine column
(1984-1992) provided cultural context for art, history, and theory. His
critical works on popular culture and film include
Chuck Jones: A Flurry of Drawings for the
University of California at Berkeley
"Portraits of American Genius" series,
and articles on Buster Keaton. With his expertise in the modernist movement of
the early 1900s and technology and culture of the later 1900s, Kenner has
created a body of work touching on many of the leading movements throughout the
twentieth century.

The Subject Files series is the largest of the three, constituting one
half of the Kenner papers. It includes a large number of papers and articles by
colleagues of Kenner and topical files on individuals and subjects related to
Kenner's academic interests. The Works series contains various drafts,
contracts, and correspondence for books, articles, lectures, reviews, and
introductions by Kenner. The smallest series, Correspondence, largely comprises
incoming letters to Kenner. Some incoming correspondence and third-party
correspondence is located throughout the papers and several correspondents have
letters in more than one location. The Index of Correspondents at the end of
the finding aid should be consulted to locate correspondence.

The vast majority of the materials are in English, although Chinese
and Japanese ideograms are present in the Ezra Pound materials and small
amounts of Greek, Latin, Gaelic, Italian, German, and French are located
throughout the papers.

The bulk of the papers date from the late 1940s to the early 1990s. A
very few items date as early as 1916, but these are generally photo
reproductions of items or copies of letters.

The papers are generally in good condition except for occasional
stains and smudges, some identified as food and drink spills or mold growth.
Most of these materials have been placed in protective sleeves or photocopied
and discarded. Although the Ransom Center Conservation Department has treated
some of the manuscripts for mold, dormant spores may still be present and
patrons sensitive to mold may consider wearing gloves and a dust mask while
handling certain files.

Series I. Works,
1943-1994, n.d.

The Works series is divided into four subseries: Books, Articles
and Lectures, Reviews, and Introductions. The Books subseries makes up the bulk
of the series and contains notes, typescript drafts, galley proofs, and small
amounts of correspondence and clippings. The materials document Kenner's
numerous published works on Ezra Pound, James Joyce, Samuel Beckett,
Buckminster Fuller, mathematics, computing, poetry and literature in general,
and other interests. Also included are typescript fragments for several
unpublished books and one screen treatment. The files are arranged
alphabetically by title with the majority of materials consisting of typescript
drafts and fragments with hand written corrections by Kenner. A small amount of
correspondence is included with many of the works, usually fan mail or letters
and contracts from Kenner's publishers. General research notes and materials
for Beckett, Fuller, Joyce, Pound, and others are located in the Subject Files
series and complement the files found in this series. Kenner's academic papers
and dissertation from Yale University are also located in the Subject Files
series.

The Articles and Lectures subseries contains offprints, tearsheets,
and photocopies of articles written by Kenner for magazines, newspapers,
journals, and encyclopedias such as
Harpers,
Art & Antiques,
The New York Times,
Byte,
Shenandoah, and
Encyclopaedia Britannica. Also included
are several short radio scripts used on National Public Radio and typescripts
and notes for lectures and talks on computers, Joyce, Pound, and symbolism. As
in the Books subseries, correspondence is sparse and predominately from editors
and publishers, with some fan mail. One exception is for the 1964
Saturday Evening Post article
"Don't Send Johnny to College," which
generated a large number of letters from readers and numerous requests for use
and reproduction. The materials in this subseries date from the early 1940s to
the early 1990s and are arranged alphabetically by title.

The Reviews subseries contains book, movie, and software reviews
written by Kenner and is similar to the Articles and Lectures subseries in date
range and types of materials. The reviews appeared in
The Los Angeles Times,
London Times,
Poetry,
Inquiry, and many of the same publications
noted under Articles and Lectures. This subseries is arranged alphabetically by
the name of author of the work reviewed.

The Introductions subseries consists of one box of typescripts and
correspondence related to book forewords and sound recording liner notes
written by Kenner. Arrangement is alphabetical by author or by title when the
author is unknown. Author correspondence is included with several of the
titles.

A. Books,
1947-1994, n.d.

Anthology of English Literature
[unpublished]

Box

Folder

1

1

Holograph and typed notes,
n.d.

2

Mimeo typescript outline and introduction,
n.d.

3

Typescript draft fragment,
n.d.

Early typescript and photocopy draft

Box

Folder

1

4

Section I,
n.d.

5

Section II,
n.d.

6-7

Section III,
n.d.

Box

Folder

2,

1

Section III,
n.d.

Box

Folder

2

2-3

Section IV,
n.d.

4

Section V,
n.d.

5

Section VI,
n.d.

6

Section VII,
n.d.

Intermediate typescript and photocopy
draft

Box

Folder

2

7

Section I,
n.d.

Box

Folder

3

1

Section II,
n.d.

2-4

Section III,
n.d.

5-6

Section IV,
n.d.

Box

Folder

4

1

Section V,
n.d.

2

Section VI,
n.d.

3

Section VII,
n.d.

4

Correspondence and contracts,
1969-1984

The Art of Poetry (1959)

Box

Folder

4

5-6

Carbon copy typescript,
1959

7

Correspondence and contracts,
1952-1987

Bucky: A Guided Tour of Buckminster
Fuller (1973)

Box

Folder

4

8

Research notes,
1970-1971, n.d.

Box

Folder

5

1

Draft fragments,
1972, n.d.

2-4

Carbon copy typescript,
n.d.

5-6

Typescript printer's copy with corrections,
1973

Box

Folder

6

1

Typescript continued

2

Photographs and illustrations

3

Galley proofs,
n.d.

4

Correspondence,
1970-1991, n.d.

5

Clippings,
1973-1976

Chuck Jones: A Flurry of
Drawings (1994)

Box

Folder

6

6

Final manuscript,
ca. 1994

7

Printer's copy,
ca. 1994

8

Correspondence and contracts,
1990, n.d.

A Colder Eye (1983)

Box

Folder

7

1-2

Early typescript draft fragments,
n.d.

3-4

Intermediate manuscript fragments,
1981-1982

5-6

Late manuscript,
n.d.

Box

Folder

8

1

Late manuscript continued,
n.d.

2-4

Final draft mimeo manuscript with design notes,
1982

5-6

Printer's copy,
n.d.

Box

Folder

9

1

Printer's copy,
n.d.

2-3

Master galley proofs with corrections,
1982

4-5

Duplicate galley proofs,
1982

6

Galley proof fragments with corrections,
1983

Box

Folder

10

1-2

Corrected master galley proofs,
1983

3-4

Duplicate galley proofs,
1983

5-6

Page proofs with corrections,
1983

Box

Folder

11

1

Page proof fragments,
1983

2-3

Blue sheets,
1983

4

Dust jacket dummies,
n.d.

5

Correspondence,
1977-1983, n.d.

6

Clippings and reviews,
1983-1987, n.d.

7

8 in. floppy disk,
n.d.

The Counterfeiters: An Historical
Comedy (1968)

Box

Folder

11

8

Research notes,
n.d.

Box

Folder

12

1

Holograph and typescripts drafts,
1965, n.d.

2

Mimeo typescript,
n.d.

3

Galley proofs,
1985, n.d.

4

Printer's markup and cover,
n.d.

5

Page proofs,
n.d

6

Dust jacket,
ca. 1968

7

Correspondence,
1966-1985, n.d.

8

Clippings and reviews,
1968-1986, n.d.

Dublin's Joyce (1956)

Box

Folder

12

9-10

Incomplete carbon typescript with corrections,
n.d.

Box

Folder

13

1

Gatherings with corrections,
1955

2

Correspondence,
1950-1987

3

Clippings and reviews,
1955-1957, n.d.

Geodesic Math and How to Use It (1976)

Box

Folder

13

4-7

Research materials and notes,
1973-1974, n.d.

Box

Folder

14

1-2

Research materials and notes,
1973-1974, n.d.

3-4

Draft fragments with corrections,
n.d.

5

Early incomplete photocopy typescript,
n.d.

6

Intermediate typescript,
n.d.

Box

Folder

15

1

Intermediate typescript continued

2-3

Late incomplete typescript,
n.d.

4

Photographs and illustrations,
n.d.

5

Dust jacket dummy,
n.d.

6-7

Correspondence,
1972-1988, n.d.

Box

Folder

16

1

Clippings and reviews,
1976-1981, n.d.

Gnomon: Essays on Contemporary
Literature (1958)

Box

Folder

16

2

Correspondence,
1957-1972

3

Clippings and reviews,
1958

Heath/Zenith Z-100 User's Guide (1984)

Box

Folder

16

4

Typescript draft fragments,
1983-1984, n.d.

5

Typescript,
1983

6

Photocopy typescript with corrections,
1983

7

Target proof fragments,
n.d.

8

Correspondence and contracts,
1980-1986, n.d.

9

Clippings and reviews,
1985, n.d.

Historical Fictions (1990)

Box

Folder

16

10

Dust jacket,
ca. 1990

11

Clippings and reviews,
1990

A Home-made World (1975)

Box

Folder

16

12

Notes,
n.d.

13

Composite draft fragments,
1973-1974, n.d.

14-15

Incomplete typescript and mimeo copy drafts,
n.d.

Box

Folder

17

1

Galley proofs,
n.d.

2

Dust jacket dummies,
n.d.

3

Correspondence and contracts,
1973-1978

4

Clippings and reviews,
1975-1978

5

A Hundred Years of Joyce [unpublished] -
typescript introduction and correspondence,
1977-1981

Series II. Correspondence,
1946-1993, n.d.

Correspondence is divided into two subseries: Incoming
and Outgoing, with Incoming correspondence further divided into Personal,
General, and E-mail. The majority of the Personal correspondence comes from
Kenner's colleagues or close acquaintances and documents literary activities
and projects. Included in this section is correspondence from such notable
figures as Samuel Beckett, T. S. Elliot, Buckminster Fuller, Ezra Pound,
Charles Tomlinson, William Carlos Williams, and Louis Zukofsky. Some of these
individual's letters include third party correspondence between themselves and
someone other than Kenner. Other third party correspondence, mostly
photocopied, is located under the individual's name in the Subject Files
series.

General correspondence contains routine requests and comments from
fans and students, and business letters regarding Kenner's publications and
travels. There is some overlap with the Personal correspondence, particularly
with individuals whose correspondence covers several years and who became more
closely connected to Kenner or his work over time. There is also some overlap
with the Works files, with letters from publishers and from fans.

E-mail correspondence consists of printout correspondence mostly from
colleagues and students at academic institutions and includes discussions from
computer and literary online lists.

The small amount of Outgoing correspondence (two folders) mirrors the
Incoming Personal and General correspondence, although there are no outgoing
letters to the above notable figures. The files contain mostly carbons and
photocopies of the original letters.

Both incoming and outgoing correspondence is arranged alphabetically.
Additional correspondence is located throughout Kenner's papers and an Index of
Correspondents is provided. The index lists all incoming letters to Kenner and
select third party correspondence from well-known writers such as Beckett and
Pound.